A FAMILY-run firm is bucking the cold winter snap and revealed it is enjoying year on year growth as they enter their fifth anniversary year.

Rays Ice Cream on Devizes Road will mark their five year anniversary in August and has revealed that they have enjoyed eight per cent year on year growth since launching in the summer of 2011.

To celebrate their birthday year they are launching a new selfie-inspired campaign which could see snappers rewarded with free ice cream for their creative efforts.

The family business cooks up ice cream in around 200 flavours on site from locally sourced whole milk, double cream and fruit and specialist ingredients imported from Italy and has seen demand for their produce increase rapidly.

As a result, the business now employs six people and is currently open five days a week, Wednesday to Sunday from 11am to 6pm, while the spring and summer months see them stay open seven days a week.

Looking back on more than four years of growth, Hadi Brooks, co-founder of Rays Ice Cream, said: “When we started out in August 2011, with just one display freezer, we didn’t anticipate the business would grow so rapidly.

“It’s clear that the people of Swindon appreciate the combination of quality ingredients, creative thinking and attention to detail that go into the production and presentation of our ice cream. We thank all our customers for supporting us these last five years – and look forward to serving them for many more.”

To celebrate their anniversary, Rays Ice Cream is launching the #RaysStickerSelfie campaign. They’re encouraging their customers to take a selfie with a car sticker for the chance to win free ice cream. The car stickers can be collected in store and one winner will be picked every month.

At their shop in Old Town they have a minimum of 16 flavours of homemade ice cream available at any one time. They come in waffle cones or small tubs to eat immediately or in larger tubs to take home, while they also take orders for ice cream cakes.

As the business has developed over the past five years, the team has introduced new products. Throughout the colder months their home made waffles prove to be a heart-warming winner for their customers. Rays Ice Cream has prided itself on being suitable for everyone, 95 per cent of their ice creams are gluten free, they offer gluten free cones and have just introduced gluten free waffles.

Rays Ice Cream’s reach, however, extends way beyond the confines of the shop itself. With its two mobile trailers, the business caters for some 40 events within an hour’s drive of Swindon every year. These include village fairs, weddings, school fetes, festivals and charity events. The trailers are also available for corporate events, making regular appearances at the Nationwide HQ in Pipers Way. They cater for both indoor and outdoor events.